Boiler-tube cleaner



F. W. UNAKER.

BOILER TUBE CLEANER.

APPLICATION FILED MAY Io, 1919.

Patented Apr. 25, 1922.

' 3 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

INVNTOR By Attorneys,

@rama/MQW@ V WW I, w. IIIIAKEII.

BOILER TUBE CLEANER.

APPLICATION FILED MAY I0. IsI9.

l ,4 1 3, 60 1 Patented Apr. V25, 1922.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

F.W.L|NAKER.

BOILER TUBE CLEANER.

APPLICATION FILED MAY l0, 1912). 1,413,601. Patented Apr. 25, 1922.

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b'b@@www 0600666660660006 000000C/P3QQ0000000 INVENTOR By fowzeys, mmm @ww .said devices, and aims FREDERICK W. LINAKER, 0F DUBOIS, PENNSYLVANIA.

BoILnR-TUBE CLEANER.

Application filed May- 10,

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, FREDERICK W. LI N AKER, a subject of the King of Great Britain, residing in Dubois, in the county of Clearfield and State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful lImprovements in Boiler-Tube Cleaners, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to devices for cleaning the tubes of boilers, economizers and the like, commonly known as soot cleaners, and more especially to the means for operating to provideimprovements therein.

In one style of tube cleaner, largely in use, the cleaning element comprises a rotatable tube above, below, or among the boiler tubes. Frequently these tubes are located high above the boiler-room floor, or are otherwise diiicultly accessible from the boiler-room` floor, and means are provided for rotating such tubes from the boiler-room floor.

The most usual means for rotating such tubes have been a sprocket on the tube and a chain hanging from said sprocket. Valves for controlling the admission of the cleaning fluid are usually located near the boilerroom floor so as to-be readily reached by the boiler attendant. In many cases the valves are quite distant from the rotating cleaner tubes, the flow to which they control.

The present invention provides a means whereby the rotating 'cleaner tubes, and valves controlling the fiow thereto, may be closely associated, and readily operated by an attendant standing on the boiler-room floor.

The invention further provides means whereby a valve and rotatable cleaner tube may be operated through one operating handle. l

Other features of improvement will be hereinafter referred to.

Several embodiments of the invention. are illustrated in the accompanying drawings.

In said drawings,-

Figure 1 is a vertical, and tionalv view, vention.

Fig. 2 is a view in elevation of the parts shown in Fig. 1.

`Fig. 3 is a view showing a cross-section of a boiler, and showing the appllcation of the invention.

Fig. 4 is a detailed view key 20, Fig. 1,

mainly secof one embodiment of the in- Specication of Letters Patent.

of the slidingA Patented Apr. 25, 1922. 1919. serial No. 296,224. l

tatably mounted above a bank of tubes 2 in a b oiler. The tube 1 is provided with a plurallty of jet-forming nozzles or orifices 3,- through which cleaning -fiuid, usually steam under pressure, is projected and formed into jets, the jets striking various parts of the tubes, walls, etc., as the tube 1 is turned.

Numeral 5 designates a suitable valve, controlling the fiow of cleaning fluid to the cleaner tube 1, shown in Fig. 1 as connected to the cleaner tube by a short length of pipe or nipple 6. A stuffing box 7 is provided in the line between 4the valve and cleaning tube, as shown in Fig. 1,. the stufling box being conveniently formed as a the stuffing box is formed asa part of a fitting upo-n the end of the tube 1.

eans are provided for rotating the cleaner tube 1 and for opening-and closing the valve.

Referring more particularly to Figs. 1 to et, inclusive, the means for rotating the cleaner tube l and opening and closing the 'valve 5 preferably comprise a single operating deviceI or handle for this purpose.

In said figures, numeral 10 designates a shaft or rod, which whichl has thereon at oneend a hand-wheel or equivalent device l1, and has at or near the opposite end a pinion 12 meshing with a bevel gear 13. The rod or vshaft 10 also has thereon a spur gearl meshing with a pinion 16, which is preferably carried directly by the stem 17 of the valve 5. This pinion 16 broad enough to remain vin mesh with4 the gear 15 throughout the opening and closing movements of the stem 17. To this end, the teeth 19 are preferably of a breadth approximately equal to the length of travel of the valve to and from its seat, width of the teeth upon the gear 15. Both the pinion 12 and gear 15 may be loose'upon the shaft 10, as shown in the present embodiment, and a key or similar part 20 (Fig. 4) provided for alternately fixing is preferably hollow, and

preferably has teeth which are' plus the part of i the casmg, whlle, as shown in Figs. 6 and 7,

projecting through a slot 26 in the hollow shaft. The spring 23 is preferably double the strength of the spring 22. rlhe pinion 12 is provided with a recess 26 for receiving the lug 24, and the gear 15 is provided with a recess 27, also for receiving the lug 24. Within the hollow shaft 10 there is a rod 29, bearing through the intermediary of the spring 23 upon the key 20, and connected at its opposite end to a lever 30 through the intermediary of a toggle link 31.

When it is desired to operate the cleaning device, the lever 30 is brought to the position shown in Fig. 1. ln tlns position, the lug 24 of the key 2() is either in the recess 27 or pressed against the face of the gear 15 by the spring 22. Upon turning the hand-wheel 11 in the proper direction for opening the valve, the lug 24 drops in the recess 27, if not already there, and thereafter the gear wheel 15 is turned, and turns with it the pinion 16, thereby allowing cleaning fluid to enter the cleaning tube 1. When thevalve 5 has been opened 'to the desired extent, the lever 30 is thrown up, bringing the lug 24 of the key 20. against the lower face of the pinion 12 or into the recess 26. As the spring 23 is approximately twice the strength of the spring 22, the rod 29 may effect the upward movement of the key 20. When the hand-wheel 11 is now turned, the lug 24, when opposite vthe recess 26, if not already there, drops into the recess 26, and thereafter the pinion 12 is turned, thereby turning the gear 13 and cleaning tube 1. By turning the cleaner tube, jets of cleaning fluid issuing therefrom are directed against various designedv parts of the boiler tubes and interior parts of the boiler. To shut oflI lthe supply of cleaning fluid to the cleaner tube, the lever 30 is thrown back into the position shownin- Fig. 1, the lug 24 of the key 20'being thereby brought into engagement with the recess 27 of the gear 25, as above explained, and the valve 5 closes by the turning or continued turning of thehand-wheel 11.

The construction just described, permits of the valve being brought very close to the cleaner tube, and thereby reduces the piping, subject to, and necessary to be protected from, the corrosive liquids formed by the condensed steam and certain of the combustion gases.

Instead of having the pinion 12 loose upon the shaft 10, said `gear may be fast upon the shaft 10, and a fast and loose connection made onl between the gear 15 and the shaft 10. uch a construction is shown in the embodiment illustrated in Fig. 5.

Referring to Fig. 5 it will be seen that the pinion 12 is fast upon the shaft 10, and that instead of a key 20, the gear 15 and rod 29 are provided with clutching parts, the rod conveniently being provided with a clutch pin 33, and the gear 15 with a plurality of clutch notches 34.

By raising the hand lever 30, clutch parts 33 and 34 are brought together, and by lowering the hand lever 33, the clutch parts 33 and 34 are disengaged. The operations of the parts in this embodiment of the invention are otherwise the same as described in relation to the embodiment shown in Figs. 1 to 4, inclusive.

The inventive ideas are capable of receiving other mechanical expressions than those herein specifically illustrated and described.

What I claim is 1. A tube cleaner, comprising a rotary jet-projecting element, a valve controlling the admission of fluid thereto, means for operating said rotary jet-projecting element, and means adapted to connect and disconnect said means for operating said element to and from said valve to operate the latter to admit or cut offl a supply of cleaning fluid to said jet-projecting element.

2. A tube cleaner, comprising a rotary jet-projecting element, al valve controlling the admission of fluid thereto, an operating device, and means for connecting said operating device to either said rotary jetprojecting element or said valve, whereby said operating device may serve the purpose of rotating said element and controlling the admission of fluid thereto.

3. A tube cleaner, comprising a rotary 'jet-projecting element, a valve vcontrolling the admission of fluid thereto, an operating device, and means for connecting said operating device to either'said rotary jet-projecting element or said valve, whereby said operating device may serve the purpose of rotating said element and controlling the admission of fluid thereto, said means comprising meshing gears between said operating deviceand valve and meshin gears between said operating devicev and e ement, and means for rendering a gear of each set fast or loose with regard to the operating device, whereby said valve may be operated without operating said element, or vice versa.

4. A tube cleaner, comprising a rotary jet-projecting element, a valve controlling the admission of fluid thereto, `and means for operating said valve and jet-projecting element, said means comprising a shaft, a

ment, said means comprislng a shaft, a gear connecting with said valve, and a gear connecting with said element, thereon, and a part slidable to connect said shaft to one of said gears, means for sliding said part into positlon tol connect with said gear, comprising a resilient part between said sliding means and sliding part, permitting of this operation of said sliding means and a subsequent engagement of said sliding part and gear.

6. A tube cleaner, comprising a rotary jetprojecting element, a valve controlling the admission of fluid thereto, and means for operating said valve, said means comprising a shaft, a gear on said valve and a gear on said shaft meshing with said gear on said valve, said gears having teeth' of sufficient breadth to remain in mesh during movement of said valve between its open and closed positions.

7. A tube cleaner, comprising a rotary jetprojecting element, a valve controlling the admission of fluid thereto, and means for operating said valve, said means comprising a shaft, a gear on said valve, and a gear on said shaft meshing with said gear on said valve, said gear on said valve having teeth thereon substantially equal in breadth to the breadth of the teeth on the gear on said shaft plus the length of travel of said valve in movingv between its open and .closed positions.

8. A tube cleaner, comprising a rotatable jet-projecting element, inaccessible from a boiler-room floor, a valve closely adjacent tov said element, and means for rotating said jet-projecting element and opening orclosing said valve from a boiler-room floor, said means comprising a single operating device and selective means for operatively connecting said device to operate either said element or said valve.

9. A tube cleaner comprising a jet-projecting element, al valve controlling admission yof Huid thereto, an upright operating shaft, gears connecting said shaft and valve, clutching means engaging one of said gears, and a clutch-operating device comprising a lever and link associated with said shaft to give longitudinal movement to the clutching means.

10. Atube cleaner comprising a rotatable jet-projecting element, a valve controlling admission of fluid thereto, anfupright operating shaft, gears connecting said shaft to said valve and said element respectively, clutching means for operatively connecting either of said gears to said shaft, and aclutch-operating device comprising a lever and link associated with said shaft to give longitudinal movement to the clutching means.

l1. A tube cleaner comprising a rotatable jet-projecting element, a valve controlling admission of fluid thereto, an upright operating shaft, and selective means for connecting said shaft to either said element or said valve, comprising a sliding coupling member, a lever movable through approximately a half revolution, and a link connecting said lever to said member, with its connecting pivots aligned in opposite positions of said lever.

In witness whereof, I have hereunto signed my name.

FREDERICK w. LINAKER. 

